Lindsey Graham remembered as ‘true American original’ at Capitol memorial

Mourners surround the flag draped casket of the late US senator Lindsey Graham during congressional tribute at the Rotunda of the US Capitol in Washington DC on 28 July 2026. Photograph: Nathan Howard/EPA View image in fullscreen Mourners surround the flag draped casket of the late US senator Lindsey Graham during congressional tribute at the Rotunda of the US Capitol in Washington DC on 28 July 2026. Photograph: Nathan Howard/EPA Lindsey Graham remembered as ‘true American original’ at Capitol memorial Political leaders honor the longtime Republican senator, whose hawkish foreign policy shaped decades in Washington US politics live – latest updates World leaders and senior political figures convened in Washington for the memorial of long-serving US senator Lindsey Graham, remembering the “swashbuckling” South Carolina Republican “a true American original” whose embrace of “America First” never softened his advocacy for a staunch interventionist US foreign policy. Prominent Republicans paid tribute to Graham, a polarizing figure and onetime rival turned stalwart ally of Donald Trump who championed the US-Israel war on Iran . He was a prominent voice in the anti-abortion movement and a unwavering supporter of Israel, serving as one of Capitol Hill’s most outspoken foreign policy hawks. Speaking during a ceremony inside the Capitol rotunda, the US Senate majority leader, John Thune, hailed Graham as a “fierce defender of Ukraine”, following its invasion by Russia in 2022, and a “powerful voice for the [anti-abortion] movement”. “I feel his absence every day, and I know my colleagues do as well,” Thune, growing emotional, continued. “I look forward to the days when you make us laugh again.” Among those in the audience, was Graham’s sister, Darline, who was sworn in earlier this month to serve the remainder of his fourth term, which ends in January. She is running in the Republican primary to permanently succeed him. Graham died suddenly earlier this month , aged 71, shortly after returning to Washington from a trip to Kyiv. The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy , and Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, are due to attend an afternoon service for Graham at Washington National Cathedral. JD Vance, the US vice-president, credited Graham with the successful confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the US supreme court in 2018, which helped conservatives secure a supermajority on the bench two years. “I believe that he saved that nomination,” Vance said. Vance paid tribute on Tuesday morning to Graham as someone “who could disagree with you without being disagreeable”. “I choose to remember Lindsey Graham as a person who could fight with you on one issue, but fight for you on another issue,” he said. “I remember Lindsey Graham as a man who loved people, and because he loved people, he was willing to reason with them, to respect them and ultimately to persuade them.” “May God rest the soul of Senator Lindsey Graham, a true American original,” he s